Apocalypse 2035: Delhi unsustainable for its 43 million inhabitants

According to a report, Delhi will overtake Tokyo as the world's most populated city and by 2035, it will have over 43 million residents. Such high density of population adds to the already fractured infrastructure and environmental hazards.

If emergency measures are not put up now, there would be no remedy available later. &nbsp | &nbspPhoto Credit:&nbspBCCL

Delhi has often scored low on sustainability charts and the city’s water woes are there for all to see. Add to it the massive population boom and unplanned urbanisation and you have a recipe for disaster. Top this up with a lethal dose of pollution and income inequality to understand how bad the situation is in the current scenario. Fast forward to 2035 and you have a Delhi that is the most populous city on Earth with a total of over 43 million people scampering for vital essentials while trying to cope up with the high cost of living and unmatched pollution. It doesn’t sound good but the reality would be even bleaker.

According to a United Nations estimate, two-thirds of the world's population will be concentrated in cities by the year 2050 and by 2028, Delhi will be the most populated city on the planet overtaking Tokyo. This brings forth a range of issues that have to be addressed at the earliest.

According to a report in the Huffington Post, drinking water scarcity in Delhi has already hit alarming levels. A large chunk of the city’s population does not have access to something as basic as piped water supply and depends on DJB and private water tankers, wells and canals. The sight of locals queued up with buckets waiting for a water tanker to arrive is common. Sewage disposal plans are non-existent in the ever-so-growing slums in the city and millions of gallons of sewage go untreated every day. Circa 2035 – We are looking at increase in crime over procurement of water and poor socio-economic conditions for the city’s inhabitants who spend a chunk of their wages on water.

Delhiites love cars and the number of registered vehicles in the city crossed the one crore mark in 2017 itself. Currently, there is a car for every second person in the city. If this trend continues, by 2035 there will be over 2 crore vehicles registered in the city itself and millions more feeding its already choked roads and flyovers. The city is already one of the most polluted in the world and vehicular emissions are a major cause of the high carbon, sulphur and particulate matter pollution.

If emergency measures are not put up now, there would be no remedy available later. The children of the city are already at risk with a spike in asthma cases in the past decade along with numerous other respiratory ailments on the rise. The need of the hour is meticulous planning and implementation of eco-friendly measures and a shift to alternate fuels. A big step in this would be the shift from diesel and petrol vehicles to hybrid and electric ones. Rainwater harvesting, three-step waste segregation and recycling at the individual level have to be made mandatory in order to make a start in the right direction.

Being the most populous city would require Delhi to be the smartest and most prepared if the quality of life is to be preserved.

Apocalypse 2035: Delhi unsustainable for its 43 million inhabitantsDescription:According to a report, Delhi will overtake Tokyo as the world's most populated city and by 2035, it will have over 43 million residents. Such high density of population adds to the already fractured infrastructure and environmental hazards.Times Now